In these parts Pabst has caught on like wildfire with people in their 20s; is this not true nationwide? Despite (because of?) the lack of ads it certainly isn’t just an old man beer any longer. The PBR merchandise has become very collectable/hot too.
Crandolph
Hmmmmmm maybe another cinematic endorsement is keeping that beer going.
In “Blue Velvet” someone offers Frank Booth (Dennis Hopper) a Heineken.
Frank’s response is “Heineken !!! F*** THAT S*** !!! Pabst Blue Ribbon !!!”
Obviously it conveys an image of the serious beer-drinker.
I’m 45 (I hope that doesn’t qualify me as a geezer), and for the hell of it I recently bought a six of Pabst (in bottles - never cans) because I was bored of all the stuff I’d been recently drinking.
It was damn good, and I’m going to buy more!
Some other factors:
-
Mismanagement. Oldsmobile used to sell a couple million cars a year - but GM’s strategy of placating its dealers by providing each with pretty much a full line of vehicles resulted in diluting all of the brands’ identies. Oldsmobile ended up without much of an identity at all, so it died.
-
Market conflict. GM provides a great example here. Oldsmobile, Buick and Cadillac all had loyal customers - the problem was, they were getting old. Until the recent reinvigoration of Cadillac, GM erred on the side of keeping the existing customers happy, rather than aggressively courting new ones. Result: imploding sales.
-
Channel conflicts. New distribution channels can be extremely disruptive - the trouble is that it can take a while to build success in a new, promising channel, and meanwhile your existing, diminishing channel can get pissy. Example: Tupperware. Tupperware parties hadn’t been doing as well, and the rise of the Internet and discounters meant that the business model didn’t look good over the longer term. So Tupperware started selling at Target and, via Target.com, on Amazon (I bought Tupperware through both channels). But the Tupperware ladoes got very pissed, and the Target affiliation wasn’t making much money. Tupperware management caved to the ladies - IMO, the worst possible outcome over the long term.
-
Lack of innovation. Again, GM’s a good example. The Chevrolet Cavalier has changed very little for about 22 years - an eon in car terms. And that’s pretty typical for US cars. Any wonder that the Asian manufacturers have cleaned GM’s clock? But it applies in lots of industries. I don’t think Burma Shave was ever available in aerosol can. And tastes change, too. More and more Americans like darker beers, which older brands like PBR, Schlitz, Hamm’s, and Schaefer never made.
-
Better opportunity in new brand. This is TAB in a nutshell - Diet Coke represented a huge opportunity, much worthier of investment than Tab. Or Philip Morris. Their top brand used to be Philip Morris itself - older folks will remember the once-iconic bellhop shouting, “Call for Philip Morris!” But in 1955 the marketing department re-engineered the Marlboro brand, which had been a women’s cigarette - and a leviathan was created. Philip Morris as a brand died out, I think sometime in the 1960s or early 70s.
This is probably a minor factor, but it touched a generation of US men. During the US vs. North Vietnam war, a whole lot of American beer was shipped to the troops. Most of it got cooked in oven-like warehouses in SV before reaching the soldiers. Lots of soldiers, kids who were drinking their first beer, were put off one brand or another because of the spoiled beer they drank. They never again touched that brand, and they still say, “I can’t stand (some brand.) It’s the nastiest crap I ever tasted.”
Maybe it scratched something?
It’s true, Pabst is definitely experiencing a resurgence of popularity among college students and hipster-types. Most of the downtown bars in Orlando have it on tap (usually as a special), and last time I visited my college town of Gainesville, all the bars were stocking it as well. It’s still relatively hard to find in supermarkets and convenience stores, but a few years ago, it was IMPOSSIBLE to find in Florida, and now it’s showing up more and more. Personally, I like it a lot, even though one girl accused me of being so “scene” (as in a “trendy music-scene kid”) for liking it. What can I say?–for a cheap, light beer, it tastes MUCH better than any of the Bud or Miller beers (which I never cared for anyway). If I don’t feel like going for heavy, dark, expensive imports, I’m all about the PBR. (And I think that famous scene in Blue Velvet got me interested in it in the first place!)
Big Bad Voodoo Lou
I had a feeling that Frank Booth’s beer statement (in “Blue Velvet”) might have had an impact on sales.
If ya like PBR, you’ll love my second favorite bar here, Bob & Barbara’s:
CRandolph*
One can of Pabst Blue Ribbon beer, one shot of Jim Beam whiskey, $3 - anytime.*
Anytime? Fine. I’d like it during the Renaissance. 
Adapted from a Steven Wright joke.